{"id":115181,"date":"2026-07-25T16:50:05","date_gmt":"2026-07-25T11:20:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=115181"},"modified":"2026-07-25T16:50:05","modified_gmt":"2026-07-25T11:20:05","slug":"tribes-of-sikkim","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/tribes-of-sikkim\/","title":{"rendered":"Tribes of Sikkim, Name List, Culture, Language, Festivals"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>Tribes of Sikkim<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> are an integral part of the state\u2019s history, culture and social fabric. They have preserved distinct languages, scripts, religious traditions, festivals and customary institutions, contributing significantly to Sikkim\u2019s unique Himalayan identity. The tribal communities of the state also enjoy special constitutional safeguards under <\/span><b>Article 371F of the Constitution.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<h2><b>List of Major Tribes of Sikkim<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The four major Scheduled Tribes of Sikkim are <\/span><b>Lepcha, Bhutia, Limboo (Limbu) and Tamang<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Lepcha and Bhutia were the original recognised Scheduled Tribes of Sikkim. Limboo (Limbu) and Tamang were added to the Scheduled Tribe list in 2003 through the <\/span><b>Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Amendment) Act, 2002.<\/b><\/p>\n<h3><b>Lepcha Tribe<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Lepchas are the indigenous and earliest known tribal community of Sikkim, mainly residing in the <\/span><b>Dzongu Reserve of North Sikkim<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They speak the <\/span><b>Lepcha (Rong) language<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which is written in the <\/span><b>Lepcha (Rong) script.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They primarily follow <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/vajrayana-buddhism\/\" target=\"_blank\"><b>Vajrayana Buddhism<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> along with their traditional animistic (nature-worship) beliefs. Religious rituals are performed by <\/span><b>Bongthing (male shaman)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><b>Mun (female shaman).<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Their traditional occupations include agriculture, shifting cultivation, forest-based livelihoods and large-cardamom cultivation. They worship <\/span><b>Mount Khangchendzonga<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> as their guardian deity.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Major festivals<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> include Pang Lhabsol, Tendong Lho Rum Faat and Namsoong.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Lepchas call themselves <\/span><b>Rongkup<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which means<\/span><b> \u201cchildren of the R\u00f3ng (Lepcha people)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u201d Their traditional ceremonial name is <\/span><b>M\u00fatunc\u00ed R\u00f3ngkup Rumkup<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, meaning <\/span><b>\u201cbeloved children of the R\u00f3ng and of God.\u201d<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Bhutia Tribe<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Bhutias are of <\/span><b>Tibetan origin <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and are mainly <\/span><b>concentrated in North and East Sikkim<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, especially in Lachen and Lachung.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They speak <\/span><b>Sikkimese (Dranjongke\/Lhokey)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which is written in the <\/span><b>Tibetan script.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The community predominantly follows <\/span><b>Vajrayana Buddhism<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and monasteries, lamas and Guru Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche) occupy an important place in their religious life.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Their traditional occupations include trans-Himalayan trade, yak pastoralism, agriculture, livestock rearing and large-cardamom cultivation.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>Dzumsa system<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, a traditional village self-governance institution, continues to function in Lachen and Lachung, managing local administration, natural resources and dispute resolution.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Major festivals<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> include Losar, Pang Lhabsol, Bumchu, Lossong, Saga Dawa and Lhabab Duchen.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Limboo (Limbu) Tribe\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>Limboos<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, also known as <\/span><b>Tsong<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, are mainly concentrated in West and South Sikkim and trace their origin to the historic Limbuwan region of eastern Nepal.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They speak the <\/span><b>Limbu language<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which is written in the indigenous <\/span><b>Sirijonga script.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The community follows the indigenous <\/span><b>Yuma Samyo (Kirati) faith<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> along with Hindu and Buddhist traditions, and religious rituals are conducted by Phedangba and Samba priests.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Agriculture, horticulture and livestock rearing constitute their traditional occupations, while their rich heritage of folk music, dance and oral literature remains an important part of Sikkim\u2019s cultural landscape.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Chasok Tangnam <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">is the principal harvest festival celebrated by the Limboo community.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Limboo community was <\/span><b>granted Scheduled Tribe status in 2003.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Tamang Tribe\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Tamangs are a <\/span><b>Tibeto-Burman tribal community<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> distributed mainly across West, South and Central Sikkim.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They speak the <\/span><b>Tamang language<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which is generally written using the Tibetan-based script.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The community predominantly follows <\/span><b>Tibetan <a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/buddhism\/\" target=\"_blank\">Buddhism<\/a><\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, while preserving several customary practices influenced by the ancient Bon tradition.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Their traditional occupations include agriculture, livestock rearing, handicrafts and other rural occupations.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sonam Lhochhar is the most important festival of the Tamang community and marks the <\/span><b>Tamang New Year.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Tamang community was <\/span><b>included in the <a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/scheduled-tribes\/\" target=\"_blank\">Scheduled Tribe<\/a> list in 2003.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Read about the Tribes of Sikkim, including Lepcha, Bhutia, Limboo, and Tamang, their culture, language, festivals, traditions, and constitutional status.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":115196,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[786],"tags":[8960],"class_list":["post-115181","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-general-studies","tag-tribes-of-sikkim","no-featured-image-padding"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115181","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=115181"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115181\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":115200,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115181\/revisions\/115200"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/115196"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=115181"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=115181"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=115181"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}